painter and draughtswoman

Musicians & Sinfonia of Cambridge

Since 2012, I have been drawing musicians practising and performing. This has given me the chance to observe the musicians’ relationships to the pieces, and by extension, composers, they are playing. The depth and vitality of the feelings reflected in thier bodies has inspired me to explore widely. The image below developped from a drawing made during a Schubert recital given by violinisht Julia Hwang, in St John’s College, Cambridge. I was particularly moved by her playing with her eyes closed and feeling as though I were included in her dream through her interpretation.

As Soft as Sleep, 2015oil on board, 23 x 20 cms

Below is an image of Jazz musicans improvising at the pub in Little Walden, to which my firned Tom Poole kindly invited me.

Souzaphone and jazz clarinet, Little Walden, 2015

The range of states of mind and heart opened by the performer’s relation to the music, has led me to ponder the drawings and develop them after the event into studies of human endeavour.

David Christophersen playing a Beethoven Sonata, 2015

John on Double Bass, 2015

I have been artist in residence for Sinfonia of Cambridge since 2013, and am drawing their rehearsals, under the batons of Howard Williams and Graham Ross (guest conductor).
Working with the orchestra, I have been exploring the relationship between the individual musician and the large group.

I have felt the individual’s contribution and both the pleasures and stresses of how those combine with orchestral playing.

Violins in rehearsal, 2015

Further drawings can be seen on the Sinfonia website: www.sinfoniaofcambridge.org.uk